Hi guys

Wow what awesome weather we are having, let's hope it continues especially for the Surf Carnival this weekend at Maranui (that's the beach at Lyall Bay).  Please be there at 9 am to help with tent construction and getting kids sorted, the comp starts at 10 am. Reminders of what you need for surf carnival follow but for this one we may be able to get some tube rescues in so therefore 10 years old and older try to bring flippers (fins) as well.  Don't panic if you don't have any but bring them if you can.

We are not sure if wetsuits can be worn at this carnival, generally 7 to 9 yrs olds can wear wetsuits OK but the 10 yrs and older age groups are likely to be barred from wearing them in competition esp. if it is fine conditions.  This will be confirmed on the day so bring everything and we will let you know what kids can wear.

Congrats to our members who did well at Wellington Swim Champs, we have some awesome swimmers in the club which augurs well for future surf competitions.  Jack Plummer, Joel Crampton, Sean Gatt and Katie Trott were all Nippers who all won medals at the comp. (please let me know if I missed anyone)

Below are key dates for the remainder of the season but please note that:

• ·         Pool training starts 31^st January, 7 pm Raumati Pool

• ·         Our Senior Club Champs take place on 6^th February at 1 pm whilst this isn't for Nippers (Nipper club champs on 17^th March) we are having a club BBQ afterwards to which everyone is invited. BYO food

• ·         18^th February marks a very special day for the Surf Club as it was on 18^th February 1913 that the tragedy of a drowning at Paekakariki subsequently lead to the formation of our Surf Club.  The club are planning a commemoration on that day (Monday 18^th February at 6:30 p.m.), this will take place at the beach  on the corner of Beach Road and The Parade, i.e. the southern end of Paekakariki Beach.  We encourage all club members to attend this special memorial.

• ·         10^th Feb, Quiz Night for team travelling to Aussie Nationals, most of this team help regularly with Nipper and would very much appreciate your support of this fundraiser, see me for tickets J

Important dates for the rest of the season.

• ·         31^st January, 1^st Nipper pool sessions for 2013
• ·         3^rd February, Nipper Carnival, Maranui
• ·         6^th February, Senior Club Champs (not Nippers) and club BBQ
• ·         10^th February, Quiz Night, fundraising for Aussie Nationals Team
• ·         16-17^th February, Capital Coast Champs, Paekakariki
• ·         18^th February, 100 year commemoration of drowning's at Paekakariki and subsequent first discussions of Surf Club
• ·         21-24 February, NZ U14 Champs at Mt Maunganui
• ·         8-10^th March, SLSNZ NZ Champs, (Seniors) Mt Maunganui
• ·         17^th March, Nipper Club Champs
• ·         15-21^st April, Aussie Nationals
• ·         4^th May, Club Prizegiving

Reminder Tips for Nipper Carnivals

For a Carnival you need:

• Togs, Swim Cap, Goggles, Nipper Hat, always wear swim cap under Nipper Hat when in the water to help stay warm (and keep hair dry). We try to have all our team in black togs.
• Heaps of warm clothing to rug up in, polypro and fleeces which can get a bit wet and stay warm are the best, wet towels wrapped around kids only get them colder.  Fleece blankets are popular and are often used by kids to wrap up in.
• If kids have rashies these are great for beach events but try to keep them dry, these aren't good for water activities.
• Bring a good morning tea and lunch, lots of drink and nibbles.
• Use sun screen especially for wind and (note to lots of people it seems) remember tops of feet and ears.
• The host club normally has a sausage sizzle going so bring some change to buy sossies.

The carnival will be split into 2 different age groups:

• 9 years and under, who will do beach sprints, flags, boogie boards and run wade run.  There may be a Nipper Board race available for competent 9 yr olds with 200 m badges. 9 yrs and under section should take about 2 hours to run.
• 10 yrs and above will do beach sprints, flags and swim, board and diamond races, additional relay races may be held depending on conditions/time. Only Nippers with 200m badges may take part in board/diamond races.  Expect to be there for most of the day for these age groups.

You don't have to register for a carnival prior to the day just turn up in plenty of time to get registration numbers put on kids plus kids groups sorted.  We need parent help to act as Team Mangers for each age group and gender, so basically 14 groups and Team Managers.  These Team Managers will ensure kids are at the start line of each of their races, they are NOT solely responsible for your child for the day.  You will need to be with your children to care, feed, water, sunscreen, warm them etc. and also to help the manager make sure they know where kids are prior to a race.  It works best if the parents of each group work together on the day, and it's more fun for all, the kids like to stick together to play with their mates, we like to be sociable.

We won't know the order of events until the day, these may change at any time due to conditions and time factors. Anything can happen at Surf events.

See you at Maranui, mine's a trim latte for when you have to make the coffee run to the café 

Regards

Sandra Bednarek